CHSAANow

Tag: Chatfield

  • Softball roundup: Fossil Ridge scores a semifinal ticket

    (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)
    Aurora Sports Park sits quiet prior to Saturday’s action. More photos. (Ryan Casey/CHSAANow.com)

    A roundup of Saturday’s action at the state softball tournaments at Aurora Sports Park.

    Class 5A

    Bracket

    State softball
    Fossil Ridge. More photos. (Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com)

    AURORA — Fossil Ridge won its first two games at Saturday’s opening rounds of the 5A state softball tournament by a combined score of 29-7. It now finds itself in the semifinals for the first time in school history.

    In fact, Fossil Ridge had never even won a game at the state tournament before Saturday.

    The third-seeded SaberCats beat No. 14 Pine Creek in the opening round, 10-3, then followed with a 19-4 mercy-rule-shortened win over No. 6 Eaglecrest which ended on Haley Donaldson’s walk-off three-run home run.

    Legacy softball coach Dawn Gaffin goes over instructions between innings Saturday afternoon during the Lightning's 8-1 quarterfinal victory against Dakota Ridge. Legacy, 5-time Class 5A state champion, will face Brighton in the 5A state semifinals 10 a.m. Sunday at Aurora Sports Park. (Dennis Pleuss)
    Legacy softball coach Dawn Gaffin goes over instructions between innings Saturday afternoon during the Lightning’s 8-1 quarterfinal victory against Dakota Ridge. Legacy, 5-time Class 5A state champion, will face Brighton in the 5A state semifinals 10 a.m. Sunday at Aurora Sports Park. More photos. (Dennis Pleuss)

    Fossil Ridge is 22-1 in 2013. The SaberCats’ lone loss this season came to Legacy on Sept. 16. They could get a rematch on Saturday — but first they’ll need to get past No. 7 Legend, another first-timer in the semis.

    Legend (19-5) dispatched No. 10 Grandview 13-8 to open the tournament, then beat No. 2 Rock Canyon 6-1 in the quartefinals.

    No. 9 Brighton was the lone team to knock off a No. 1 seed on Saturday. The Bulldogs, now 22-2, beat No. 1 Douglas County 8-4 in the quarterfinals. That followed an 11-1 win over No. 8 Loveland, the defending champion.

    In the semis, Brighton will get No. 5 Legacy, which beat a pair of Jeffco squads (Chatfield and Dakota Ridge) to earn its seventh consecutive berth into the state tournament semifinals.

    No. 12 Chatfield gave Legacy a tough test before the Lightning pulled away in the late innings for a 6-2 win.

    “I think we kind of learned from it,” Legacy senior pitcher Haley Smith said. “Our bats were kind of cold at first, but we had everybody set up.”

    Legacy used some “small ball” tactics in the third inning against No. 4 Dakota Ridge to score four runs on the way to an 8-1 victory.

    Despite the rich tradition of winning five straight 5A state crowns from 2007 to 2011, Smith doesn’t believe Legacy will be nervous going into the semifinals.

    “If anything I think there is less pressure because everyone thinks we can’t do it,” Smith said. “We are the underdogs.”

    Semifinal games:

    • (9) Brighton vs. (5) Legacy, 10 a.m.
    • (3) Fossil Ridge vs. (7) Legend, 10 a.m.

    [divider]

    4A state softball
    Broomfield is headed to the semifinals. More photos. (Pam Wagner)

    Class 4A

    Bracket

    Fifth-seeded Broomfield narrowly survived being No. 13 D’Evelyn’s second upset victim of the day. But the Eagles did survive, and advance, to the 4A semifinals on Sunday.

    Broomfield rallied from 2-0 and 4-2 holes to hold on and beat D’Evelyn 7-6 on Saturday. The Eagles had a four-run fifth-inning which led to the win. They will face top-seeded Wheat Ridge in the semifinals.

    Wheat Ridge junior Erin Dalton connects with a pitch during the Farmers' 5-0 win against Roosevelt in the opening round of the Class 4A state softball tournament Saturday at Aurora Sports Park. (Dennis Pleuss)
    Wheat Ridge junior Erin Dalton connects with a pitch during the Farmers’ 5-0 win against Roosevelt in the opening round of the Class 4A state softball tournament Saturday at Aurora Sports Park. More photos. (Dennis Pleuss)

    Wheat Ridge didn’t have much problem advancing.

    The Farmers shut out No. 16 Roosevelt by a 5-0 score in the opening round and cranked out 11 hits in a 9-4 quarterfinal victory against No. 8 Mountain View. Still, Wheat Ridge coach Marty Stricklett said there is “some improving to do” going into the final day of the season.

    The Farmers edged Broomfield 2-0 earlier this season. Sophomore Christina Nelson hit a two-run home run in the first inning and senior pitcher Jessica Salbato pitched a shutout against Broomfield back on Aug. 30.

    A 1-0 loss to Niwot in the 4A semifinals last year still motivates the Farmers heading into their eighth straight trip to the state semifinals.

    “Tomorrow we are still going off what happened last year,” Stricklett said. “We’ve got to show up and play our game. The name of our game is hitting. We’ve got to hit the ball.”

    On the other side of the bracket, No. 6 Erie beat No. 11 Silver Creek 11-1 and No. 3 Pueblo East 7-1 to advance to Sunday. The Tigers will face No. 2 Ponderosa, which escaped No. 15 Palmer Ridge’s upset bid, 5-4, to open the tournament, then beat No. 7 Berthoud 6-0 in the quarters.

    Semifinal games:

    • (1) Wheat Ridge vs. (5) Broomfield, 10 a.m.
    • (6) Erie vs. (2) Ponderosa, 10 a.m.

    [divider]

    Class 3A

    Bracket

    The four semifinalists at the 3A level each only played one game on Saturday. That’s because Strasburg, Sterling, Holy Family and Valley all had opening-round byes as seeds Nos. 1-4.

    Top-seeded Strasburg beat No. 9 Basalt 11-0, and will meet No. 4 Valley, which eeked past No. 5 Eaton 1-0.

    In the other semifinal, No. 2 Sterling will meet No. 3 Holy Family. Sterling beat No. 7 Lamar 5-0 and Holy Family beat No. 11 Dolores Huerta 3-0.

    Semifinal games:

    • (1) Strasburg vs. (4) Valley, 10 a.m.
    • (3) Holy Family vs. (2) Sterling, 10 a.m.

    — Reporting from Dennis Pleuss and Ryan Casey.

  • Football roundup: Mullen knocks off No. 7 Chatfield

    There were a few brief minutes where Chatfield seized the lead against Mullen for the first time on Friday night. In those minutes, it seemed Chatfield would escape with a win.

    Not so.

    Mullen pulled off the upset against the No. 7 Chargers, 40-34, to pick up its second win this season. Chatfield fell to 6-2.

    Mullen led for nearly the entire game — including gaps of 24-9 and 31-16 — but Chatfield tied things at 31 early in the fourth, then took a 34-31 lead on a field goal with 5:46 remaining. The Mustangs answered right back with a touchdown to regain a lead at 37-34.

    Penalties set the ensuing kickoff up from Chatfield’s 30, and Mullen caught the Chargers off-guard with an onside kick. The Mustangs recovered at the 11-yard-line. They added a 23-yard field goal with 1:40 to play.

    Chatfield marched down the field and attempted a Hail Mary from midfield as time expired, but the pass was intercepted.

    The biggest upset of the night, though, came in 3A. That’s where unranked Delta knocked off No. 1 Palisade, 31-21. Palisade rallied from a 21-7 hole at halftime to tie things at 21 after three quarters. But Delta prevailed.

    “We had a good lead at half, and we threw a pick-6 in the third and we caused ourselves some problems and turned it into a football game,” Delta coach Ben Johnson told ColoradoPreps.com’s Built Ford Tough Scoreboard Show on Friday night.

    “Our kids played a wonderful game, and it was a big game,” he said. “Our kids played real well. We’ve got another one next week. Hopefully we can — our goal is to win this league.”

    Palisade plays No. 10 Rifle next week. Rifle beat Steamboat Springs 50-10 on Friday.

    3A saw two other big upsets on Friday night: Glenwood Springs beat No. 6 Evergreen 35-7, and Roosevelt took down No. 3 Silver Creek 23-20.

    “It was a very exciting game. I think everyone got their money’s worth tonight,” Roosevelt’s Nolan Eastin told the Scoreboard Show. “Silver Creek’s such a good team. They’re so talented. We had to grind one out: we had some early turnovers, we got behind. It shows a lot about our character.

    “The game of football is a funny game, it goes high and low,” he continued. “We had a lot of lows in the first quarter, but our guys just hung in there and kept fighting and scrapping and grinding away. We made some plays, and here come the Roughriders in the second half. We were able to hold them on ‘D’ and come away with a big win.”

    Roosevelt was able to secure the win by owning possession.

    “They can’t hurt you much when they’re not on ‘O’ — and they have a great ‘O,’” Eastin said. “They’re explosive on offense, and we knew that. So we wanted to try and chew up some clock and grind the ball away and kind of ground and pound it.”

    Elsewhere in 3A, No. 2 Coronado improved to a state-best 9-0 following a 27-9 win over Woodland Park.

    In 4A, eighth-ranked Broomfield picked up an impressive 21-13 win over Montbello.

    “They came over here and gave us everything we wanted,” Broomfield coach Gary Davies told the Scoreboard Show. “There was a penalty on the last play of the half, and we had to run one more play, and we scored from 85 yards out on a run, and that put us up 21-7. Basically, in the second half we just kind of hung on. But, you know, it was a win, and I’m very happy we were on that side of the score.”

    In recent weeks, Broomfield has beaten Denver South, Standley Lake and, now, Montbello. The Eagles have won five consecutive games.

    “We just seem to be able to find ways to win games,” Davies said. “I’m not sure any of our wins have been very pretty. The kids just keep hanging in there and they don’t quit. I like where we’re sitting.”

    Elsewhere in 4A, No. 7 Durango rallied to beat 5A Fruita Monument 17-10.

    At the 2A level, No. 9 Bennett beat No. 4 Kent Denver 14-7.

    “We’ve been itching at it for quite a few years with Kent,” Bennett coach Rick Jacoby told the Scoreboard Show. “It was a big for the kids, it was the program and our school and our town.

    “They were inside the 10 (yard-line) four times and our defense stepped up huge and kept them out of the end zone.”

    Elsewhere, it was No. 7 Strasburg over Eaton 32-7.

    “Overall, I thought we really kind of controlled the line of scrimmage, and were able to get enough points up there (in the first half) to be pretty comfortable in the second half,” Strasburg coach Jeff Giger told the Scoreboard Show.

    In 1A, Resurrection Christian upset No. 8 Wray 35-13.

    “We were able to get a few of our kids that had been hurt back, and I think that was a key tonight,” Resurrection Christian coach Mark Roggy told the Scoreboard Show. “I thought out defense played very well. We were able to control the tempo of the game against a very good, potent Wray ballclub, and we were able to balance our offense. That’s big for the way we think about football here.”

    Elsewhere, No.7 Paonia topped No. 3 Hotchkiss 21-0.

    “The kids played hard; it was a fun battle,” Paonia coach Brent McRae told the Scoreboard Show. “Our defense played well. They were so prepared and so disciplined and we put a lot of respect on our defensive side of the ball.”

    It was a big night for 8-man football with three games between ranked opponents. Included was No. 2 Dayspring Christian’s 38-15 win over No. 3 Caliche, as well as No. 4 Simla’s 40-8 win over No. 6 Kiowa.

    “It was an ugly game for both teams, a defensive battle even though there was 30 points on the board, but our kids played their tails off and Kiowa has a good football team,” Simla coach Shane Zimmerman told the Scoreboard Show of his team’s win.

    Also, fifth-ranked Norwood beat No. 8 Dove Creek 56-28.

    “Dove Creek out and (drove on) us right off the bat, but we had the depth to keep putting kids in and wore ’em down and started putting points on the board in the second half,” Norwood coach Brandon Alexander told the Scoreboard Show.

  • Grand Junction, Broomfield join respective football polls

    Grand Junction football
    Grand Junction is ranked No. 10 this week. (Courtesy photo)

    Grand Junction was idle last week. No matter, the Tigers have rejoined this week’s CHSAANow.com football poll in Class 5A.

    Grand Junction (5-2), last ranked Sept. 9, is No. 10 in the poll. The Tigers took the spot vacated by Arapahoe after the Warriors were upset by Lakewood last week. Up next for GJ: Unbeaten Montrose, which is No. 1 in 4A.

    Valor Christian continued to lead the 5A poll, and received 22 of the 23 first-place votes. Fairview remained in second, and Regis Jesuit in third. Cherry Creek is fourth and ThunderRidge fifth after the two schools swapped places.

    Columbine (No. 6) and Chatfield (No. 7) also stayed put, while Pomona moved up to No. 8. The Panthers, coming off a win over rival Ralston Valley, have a big showdown with Fairview on Friday afternoon.

    Montrose is a unanimous pick atop 4A, and Monarch remained in that poll’s No. 2 spot. Pine Creek bumped up to No. 3, Falcon is fourth and Pueblo South rounds out the top 5.

    (Pam Wagner)
    Broomfield is No. 8 in 4A. (Pam Wagner)

    Broomfield (4-2) joined the 4A ranking after beating then-No. 3 Standley Lake last week. The Eagles are eighth. Standley Lake fell to ninth.

    Conifer joined the 3A poll. The Lobos are No. 9 following consecutive wins over ranked opponents Lutheran, D’Evelyn and Rifle. Rifle, No. 3 last week, dropped to No. 10 this week.

    Gunnison (No. 10) is the lone newcomer to 2A, while 1A added Yuma (No. 9) and Platte Canyon (No. 10). 8-man added Sargent at No. 10, and 6-man added Otis (No. 5).

    Complete rankings for all classes are below.

    [divider]

    CHSAANow.com Football Polls

    Voted upon by coaches and media members around the state. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding.

    Go to: 5A | 4A | 3A | 2A | 1A | 8-man | 6-man

    Class 5A
    RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW
    1 Valor Christian (22) 6-1 229 1 W
    2 Fairview (1) 6-0 192 2 W
    3 Regis Jesuit 6-1 158 3 W
    4 Cherry Creek 6-1 154 5 W
    5 ThunderRidge 6-1 153 4 W
    6 Columbine 6-1 101 6 W
    7 Chatfield 6-1 100 7 W
    8 Pomona 6-1 82 9 W
    9 Cherokee Trail 5-2 50 10 W
    10 Grand Junction 5-2 19 – Bye
    Others receiving votes:
    Overland 10, Rock Canyon 6, Mountain Range 5, Arapahoe 4, Lakewood 1, Ralston Valley 1.
    Dropped out
    Arapahoe (8).

    Class 4A
    RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW
    1 Montrose (24) 7-0 240 1 W
    2 Monarch 5-1 189 2 W
    3 Pine Creek 5-2 180 5 W
    4 Falcon 6-1 151 6 W
    5 Pueblo South 6-1 118 8 W
    6 Longmont 5-1 109 7 W
    7 Durango 6-1 97 10 W
    8 Broomfield 4-2 64 – W
    9 Standley Lake 6-1 62 3 L
    10 Loveland 5-1 59 4 L
    Others receiving votes:
    Windsor 23, Pueblo West 8, Denver South 6, Pueblo Centennial 6, Cañon City 4, Montbello 2, Sand Creek 2.
    Dropped out
    Montbello (9).

    Class 3A
    RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW
    1 Palisade (17) 7-0 179 1 W
    2 Coronado 8-0 126 2 W
    3 Silver Creek (1) 5-1 116 4 W
    4 Discovery Canyon 6-1 115 5 Bye
    5 Holy Family 5-1 96 6 W
    6 Evergreen 6-1 93 7 W
    7 Elizabeth 5-2 64 9 W
    8 Mead 6-0 57 8 W
    9 Conifer 5-2 38 – W
    10 Rifle 5-2 33 3 L
    Others receiving votes:
    Roosevelt 26, The Classical Academy 24, Frederick 10, Delta 5, Glenwood Springs 5, Lutheran 1.
    Dropped out
    Roosevelt (10).

    Class 2A
    RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW
    1 Brush (11) 6-0 110 1 W
    2 Platte Valley 5-1 92 4 W
    3 Manitou Springs 7-0 84 3 W
    4 Kent Denver 6-1 81 2 W
    5 Florence 5-2 57 5 W
    6 Faith Christian 6-2 51 6 W
    7 Strasburg 5-2 38 9 W
    8 Lamar 5-2 31 7 L
    9 Bennett 5-2 29 8 W
    10 Gunnison 5-2 11 – W
    Others receiving votes:
    Olathe 10, Jefferson 7, Fort Lupton 3, Denver West 2.
    Dropped out
    Eaton (10).

    Class 1A
    RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW
    1 Buena Vista (12) 7-0 163 1 W
    2 Limon (5) 7-0 154 2 W
    3 Hotchkiss 6-1 136 3 W
    4 Centauri 6-1 118 4 W
    5 Monte Vista 6-1 85 5 W
    6 Cedaredge 5-2 76 7 W
    7 Paonia 6-1 65 6 W
    8 Wray 4-3 40 8 W
    9 Yuma 4-3 27 – W
    10 Platte Canyon 6-1 26 – W
    Others receiving votes:
    Resurrection Christian 17, Lyons 13, Burlington 6, Cornerstone Christian 3, Rye 3, Crowley County 2, Wiggins 1.
    Dropped out
    Wiggins (9), Lyons (10).

    8-man
    RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW
    1 Hoehne (6) 7-0 96 1 W
    2 Dayspring Christian (4) 7-0 93 2 W
    3 Caliche 7-0 72 3 W
    4 Simla 6-0 66 4 W
    5 Norwood 6-1 50 5 W
    6 Kiowa 6-1 48 6 Bye
    7 Akron 5-2 27 8 W
    8 Dove Creek 6-1 26 9 W
    9 McClave 6-1 25 7 W
    10 Sargent 5-2 20 – W
    Others receiving votes:
    Vail Christian 12, Sanford 8, Springfield 5, West Grand 2.
    Dropped out
    Sanford (10).

    6-man
    RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW
    1 Liberty/Stratton (7) 7-0 48 1 W
    2 Arickaree (4) 7-0 47 2 W
    3 Hi-Plains 6-1 25 5 W
    4 Eads 6-1 24 4 W
    5 Otis 4-2 16 – W
    Others receiving votes:
    Briggsdale 5.
    Dropped out
    Briggsdale (3).

  • Softball roundup: Dakota Ridge, Chatfield move through to state

    (Jordan Morey)
    Dakota Ridge’s Rachelle Foos. (Jordan Morey)

    Rachelle Foos struck out 19 batters over two games, and Dakota Ridge easily advanced to the Class 5A state softball tournament.

    The Eagles were joined by Chatfield as a state qualifier out of Region 3. Both teams will play at the tournament next Friday and Saturday at Aurora Sports Park.

    Dakota Ridge cruised through the regional, first topping Fruita Monument 9-2, and then beating Chatfield 9-2.

    Eagles coach Marv Van Lingen approached regionals as he would any regular season game.

    “We came in with the same mentality that we have tried to maintain all year long. We preach to the girls work ethic and discipline, that’s what you work for,” Van Lingen said. “Nothing fancy, we want fundamentals.”

    Last season, Dakota Ridge reached the 5A championship game, where it lost to Loveland. This year’s Eagles entered the regional tournament as the No. 5 seed.

    Saturday was Van Lingen’s first appearance at regionals as the varsity coach — he replaced Dave Atencio this offseason after Atencio took the job at Valor Christian. Van Lingen previously headed the JV team for Dakota Ridge.

    “A lot of these girls have been under me in the JV program,” he said. “There is a familiarity with this group, each one has come up with me on the at the JV level.”

    (Jordan Morey)
    (Jordan Morey)

    Chatfield had to get to state the hard way. The Chargers started the day hot by beating Greeley West 16-6. But the loss to Dakota Ridge set up an elimination game between Chatfield and Fruita Monument.

    “I told them if they really want it, they needed to dig down deep and find it,” said Chargers coach Nicole Janssen.

    Through the first three and a half innings, it appeared that the game would be a defensive struggle between the two teams. Both pitchers hadn’t given up any runs until the Chargers scored three in the bottom of the third. The Chargers led thereafter and won 5-2.

    Sophomore pitcher Jessica Jarecki had a fantastic game against Fruita with eight strikeouts and only one earned run in six innings. Jarecki said that her rise and curve balls were blowing by Fruita.

    Jarecki prepared her team ready to play following the tough loss to Dakota Ridge, and has a gameplan for state.

    (Jordan Morey)
    (Jordan Morey)

    “When we were in a circle I started jumping up and down and said ‘Let’s go, let’s get this!” Jarecki said. “We need to continue to keep being a team. In the huddle, our coach said that we play as a team and not as individuals.”

    Perhaps the biggest surprise of the day out of 5A regional play was 14th-seeded Castle View. After beating No. 19 Rocky Mountain, No. 14 Castle View defeated No. 3 Legend 5-4. Legend, however, rebounded to make the field.

    ThunderRidge, a No. 26 seed, also made the 5A tournament.

    There weren’t any major upsets in 4A regionals. No. 1 Wheat Ridge dominated both of its games, winning 13-1 against Mead and 13-3 against Palmer Ridge. No. 23 Roosevelt was among the 16 qualifiers.

    In 3A, No. 9 Lamar upset No. 4 Eaton 2-1 — however, both teams will make the tournament.

    On Sunday, a CHSAA committee will seed the 5A, 4A and 3A brackets. Each bracket will be announced on CHSAANow.com.

    [divider]

    State qualifiers

    Listed in order of regional seed

    Class 5A
    Bracket

    1. Douglas County
    2. Rock Canyon
    3. Legend
    4. Fossil Ridge
    5. Dakota Ridge
    6. Legacy
    8. Brighton
    9. Eaglecrest
    10. Loveland
    11. Grandview
    12. Chatfield
    13. Grand Junction
    14. Castle View
    15. Pine Creek
    16. Standley Lake
    26. ThunderRidge

    Class 4A
    Bracket

    1. Wheat Ridge
    2. Erie
    3. Ponderosa
    4. Pueblo East
    5. Discovery Canyon
    6. Broomfield
    8. Berthoud
    9. Valor Christian
    10. Mountain View
    11. Silver Creek
    12. Thompson Valley
    13. D’Evelyn
    14. Pueblo West
    15. Mullen
    16. Palmer Ridge
    23. Roosevelt

    Class 3A
    Bracket

    1. Strasburg
    2. Sterling
    3. Holy Family
    4. Lamar
    5. Valley
    6. La Junta
    7. Burlington
    8. Basalt
    9. Eaton
    11. Florence
    12. Dolores Huerta
    15. Cedaredge

  • 5A softball state championship bracket

    The 2013 state softball bracket for Class 5A.

    2013 CHSAA State Softball Championships 2013 5A Bracket

  • Palisade takes over atop 3A football ranking

    (Courtesy photo)
    Palisade is now the No. 1 team in Class 3A. (Betsy McLaughlin/Palisade Tribune)

    Palisade edged then-No. 1 Rifle last Friday after rallying from a 27-14 halftime deficit. Tuesday, Palisade is on top of CHSAANow.com’s Class 3A football poll.

    The Bulldogs received all 13 first-place votes in moving up from No. 2 taking over at No. 1. Rifle dropped to third. Unbeaten Coronado, which has the most wins in the state at 7-0, is second.

    The 3A ranking added Roosevelt (No. 10) this week.

    In the 5A poll, Fairview has moved up to No. 2 from No. 3.

    The Knights (5-0) are 5A’s lone remaining unbeaten team, and got one first-place vote. Valor Christian got the other 23 and remained atop the ranking.

    Regis Jesuit is third this week, and is followed by No. 4 ThunderRidge and No. 5 Cherry Creek.

    Columbine rejoined the 5A ranking at sixth after its wild win over then-No. 2 Chatfield. Chatfield dropped to seventh this week.

    Arapahoe is eighth, Pomona is ninth and Cherokee Trail fell to tenth after its loss to Cherry Creek last week.

    Montrose, idle last week, remained in 4A’s No. 1 spot. Monarch moved up to No. 2, and Standley Lake is No. 3 this week. That ranking added Pueblo South at No. 8 and Durango at No. 10.

    Complete rankings for all classes are below.

    [divider]

    CHSAANow.com Football Polls

    Voted upon by coaches and media members around the state. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding.

    Go to: 5A | 4A | 3A | 2A | 1A | 8-man | 6-man

    Class 5A
    RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW
    1 Valor Christian (23) 5-1 239 1 W
    2 Fairview (1) 5-0 207 3 W
    3 Regis Jesuit 5-1 176 5 W
    4 ThunderRidge 5-1 151 6 W
    5 Cherry Creek 5-1 150 8 W
    6 Columbine 5-1 94 – W
    7 Chatfield 5-1 90 2 L
    8 Pomona 5-1 66 9 W
    9 Arapahoe 5-1 60 10 W
    10 Cherokee Trail 4-2 53 4 L
    Others receiving votes:
    Ralston Valley 13, Doherty 10, Grandview 5, Overland 3, Mountain Range 2, Grand Junction 1.
    Dropped out
    Grandview (7).

    Class 4A
    RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW
    1 Montrose (23) 6-0 230 1 Bye
    2 Monarch 4-1 179 3 W
    3 Standley Lake 6-0 164 6 W
    4 Loveland 5-0 161 4 W
    5 Pine Creek 4-2 145 8 W
    6 Falcon 5-1 82 2 L
    7 Longmont 4-1 80 10 W
    8 Pueblo South 5-1 60 – W
    9 Montbello 5-1 53 5 L
    10 Durango 5-1 50 – W
    Others receiving votes:
    Broomfield 43, Wheat Ridge 7, Pueblo West 4, Denver South 2, Pueblo Centennial 2, Windsor 2, Sand Creek 1.
    Dropped out
    Pueblo West (7), Pueblo Centennial (9).

    Class 3A
    RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW
    1 Palisade (15) 6-0 150 2 W
    2 Coronado 7-0 116 3 W
    3 Rifle 5-1 113 1 L
    4 Silver Creek 4-1 105 4 W
    5 Discovery Canyon 6-1 87 5 W
    6 Holy Family 4-1 64 6 W
    7 Evergreen 5-1 54 8 W
    8 Mead 5-0 50 7 W
    9 Elizabeth 4-2 39 9 W
    10 Roosevelt 3-2 20 – W
    Others receiving votes:
    Frederick 13, Conifer 10, The Classical Academy 1, Delta 1, Glenwood Springs 1, Pueblo East 1.
    Dropped out
    D’Evelyn (10).

    Class 2A
    RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW
    1 Brush (12) 5-0 120 1 W
    2 Kent Denver 5-1 102 2 W
    3 Manitou Springs 6-0 93 3 W
    4 Platte Valley 4-1 89 4 W
    5 Florence 4-2 62 8 W
    6 Faith Christian 5-2 58 6 W
    7 Lamar 5-1 50 5 L
    8 Bennett 4-2 28 10 W
    9 Strasburg 4-2 24 7 L
    10 Eaton 3-2 10 – W
    Others receiving votes:
    Gunnison 7, Denver West 6, Olathe 6, Bayfield 2, Jefferson 2, La Junta 1.
    Dropped out
    Denver West (9).

    Class 1A
    RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW
    1 Buena Vista (8) 6-0 141 1 W
    2 Limon (7) 6-0 138 2 W
    3 Hotchkiss 5-1 121 3 W
    4 Centauri 5-1 102 4 W
    5 Monte Vista 5-1 77 6 W
    6 Paonia 5-1 65 8 W
    7 Cedaredge 4-2 61 7 W
    8 Wray 3-3 33 – W
    9 Wiggins 4-1 22 5 L
    10 Lyons 5-0 16 – W
    Others receiving votes:
    Cornerstone Christian 12, Center 7, Meeker 7, Nederland 6, Burlington 5, Rye 5, Platte Canyon 4, Resurrection Christian 3.
    Dropped out
    Jefferson (9), Meeker (10).

    8-man
    RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW
    1 Hoehne (6) 6-0 78 1 W
    2 Dayspring Christian (2) 6-0 72 2 W
    3 Caliche 6-0 61 3 W
    4 Simla 5-0 56 5 Bye
    5 Norwood 5-1 44 6 W
    6 Kiowa 6-1 38 7 W
    7 McClave 5-1 27 9 W
    8 Akron 4-2 25 4 L
    9 Dove Creek 5-1 24 10 W
    10 Sanford (1) 5-1 10 – W
    Others receiving votes:
    Sargent 7, Springfield 5, Soroco 2.
    Dropped out
    Granada (8).

    6-man
    RK TEAM W-L PTS PVS LW
    1 Liberty/Stratton (7) 6-0 43 1 W
    2 Arickaree (3) 6-0 42 3 W
    3 Briggsdale 5-0 28 4 W
    4 Eads 5-1 20 5 W
    5 Hi-Plains 5-1 13 2 L
    Others receiving votes:
    Hanover 2, Otis 2.
    Dropped out
    None.

  • 5A softball regional tournament brackets

    A complete schedule for the Class 5A regional softball playoffs. All games are Oct. 12, unless noted.

    Printable bracket: 5A softball regionals

    Go to region: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8

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  • Football roundup: No. 8 Pine Creek storms back to beat No. 2 Falcon

    The big showdown down South took a turn at halftime.

    Trailing second-ranked Falcon 13-8, No. 8 Pine Creek scored the game’s final 21 points en route to a 29-13 win in Class 4A football.

    “We made some adjustments at halftime and really came out and played well,” Pine Creek coach Todd Miller told ColoradoPreps.com’s Built Ford Tough Scoreboard Show on Friday night. “We got them off the field, our offense controlled the second half, and that was able to keep (Falcon star Kalen Ballage) from carrying the ball. We’ve got a chance of winning when he’s not carrying it.”

    Ballage did finish the game with 196 yards and two scores.

    “We kind of took a punch in our mouth in the first half — playing in about 40 mile-per-hour winds — and we were able to adjust,” Miller told the Scoreboard Show. “Our kids just controlled the line of scrimmage and Scott Savage and James Fisher had space and they found creases, and we were able to get up on people. And Lavanson Coffey, our blocking fullback, just had a great game and we just kind of went back to old-fashioned football, running between the tackles and getting chunks of yardage and able to put some points on the board.”

    Pine Creek is now 3-0 against 4A competition. The Eagles opened 1-2 against 5A foes Fountain-Fort Carson, Lakewood and Columbine.

    “Going through Columbine, going through Lakewood and Fountain-Fort Carson prepared us for this (game against Falcon),” Miller said. “We had a couple of tough losses early, but we went through some hard practices and hard losses against tough, physical teams and they pay dividends on nights like tonight.”

    The other monster game on Friday night ended with No. 2 Palisade nipping No. 1 Rifle in 3A, 28-27. The Bulldogs’ Levi Hoaglund found John Goff with 17 seconds remaining to secure the win.

    “We had a group of guys that just persevered and hung with it,” Palisade coach Joe Ramunno told the Scoreboard Show.

    Palisade trailed 27-14 at halftime.

    “That’s just kind of the nature of kids that we have here at Palisade,” Ramunno said. “It’s been that way for many, many years — you can go back to the 50s. They’re tough guys that just kind of hang in there. And we got out-played tonight. I really felt like we were outplayed for almost three-and-a-half quarters. Very fortunate to come out with a win, and they just have that mentality: there’s a lot of fight in that dog.”

    At the 5A level, it was another week of destruction. No. 2 Chatfield lost to unranked Columbine in a wild game, No. 8 Cherry Creek topped No. 4 Cherokee Trail and Overland upset No. 7 Grandview, beating the Wolves for the first time in a very long time. Since 2004, Overland was 0-9 against Grandview and was outscored 103-336 over that span.

    Mullen very nearly took down No. 10 Arapahoe, but the Warriors survived in overtime, 27-21. Arapahoe was up 21-0 at halftime.

    When the dust cleared, it left Fairview as 5A’s lone remaining unbeaten team. The Knights (5-0) topped Arvada West 41-21 on Friday.

    Elsewhere, it was No. 8 Paonia beating No. 10 Meeker in 1A despite six turnovers.

    “I hope it was six. I don’t know, I kind of lost count,” Paonia coach Brent McRae told the Scoreboard show. “We just kind of huddled them up and said, ‘Here’s the deal, boys: this happens. This happens in life. And you can pick it up and finish and keep believing and keep fighting or you can lay down.’  They fought for each other.”

    Also, 2A’s eighth-ranked Florence rebounded from last week’s loss to Manitou Springs to beat No. 5 Lamar.

    “They knew what they had to do, what they had to clean up, and they had a pretty good week of practice and took a lot of pride in cleaning up what we needed to clean up,” Florence coach Jeremy Nix told the Scoreboard Show.

  • Columbine edges No. 2 Chatfield in wild football game

    Columbine senior Bernard McDondle attempts to shed the tackle attempt of Chatfield junior Jeremy Thompson during the Class 5A Super 6 League game Friday night at Jeffco Stadium. McDondle had a monster night racking up 285 yards rushing and six touchdowns in the Rebels' dramatic 50-43 victory. (Dennis Pleuss)
    Columbine senior Bernard McDondle attempts to shed the tackle attempt of Chatfield junior Jeremy Thompson during the Class 5A Super 6 League game Friday night at Jeffco Stadium. McDondle had a monster night racking up 285 yards rushing and six touchdowns in the Rebels’ dramatic 50-43 victory. (Dennis Pleuss)

    LAKEWOOD — Columbine senior Bernard McDondle rushed for 285 yards and six touchdowns Friday night, but his most important role late was that of a decoy.

    The Rebels (5-1, 1-1 in 5A Super 6 League) pulled out a 50-43 victory against previously undefeated and No. 2-ranked Chatfield (5-1, 1-1) thanks to a play Columbine calls “hide-a-ball” in the final minute at Jeffco Stadium. Junior Austin Norton scored on a 65-yard touchdown run with 45 seconds left in the fourth quarter when Chatfield led 43-42.

    “We’ve been working on it all week,” said Norton, who picked up the football after some slight of hand by Columbine quarterback Michael Tait. “It worked out perfectly and we fooled (Chatfield) with the play.”

    Tait faked a pitch to McDondle after placing the ball behind a Columbine lineman’s legs. Norton picked up the ball and raced down the sideline untouched to score the eventual game-winning touchdown as the majority of Chatfield defenders had their eyes on McDondle.

    “As soon as (Chatfield) bit onto me I knew it was money,” McDondle said of the perfectly executed trick play.

    McDondle put up some remarkable rushing numbers in the rivalry between the two south Jeffco-area schools. He carried the ball 27 times to rack up his 285 yards. His 67-yard touchdown on the first Rebels’ drive of the second half put him over 200 yards on the night. He scored on runs of 10, 45 and 4 yards in the first half, before tacking on touchdown runs of 13 and 25 yards in the fourth quarter.

    “(McDondle) is a special, special player,” Columbine coach Andy Lowry said.

    Neither squad led by more than seven points as both offenses answered one other time after time.

    Columbine used its vaunted rushing attack to the tune of 485 yards on the ground. While McDondle accounted for the majority of offense, Tait finished with 82 yards passing and 63 yards rushing.

    Chatfield junior quarterback Kyle Winkler gets off a pass Friday night at Jeffco Stadium. Despite going 27 for 39 passing for 294 yards and a touchdown, Winkler and the Chargers suffered their first loss of the season to rival Columbine, 50-43. (Dennis Pleuss)
    Chatfield junior quarterback Kyle Winkler gets off a pass Friday night at Jeffco Stadium. Despite going 27 for 39 passing for 294 yards and a touchdown, Winkler and the Chargers suffered their first loss of the season to rival Columbine, 50-43. (Dennis Pleuss)

    Chatfield’s offense wouldn’t be outdone. The Chargers had a balanced output with 294 passing yards from junior quarterback Kyle Winkler to go along with 271 rushing yards. Junior Michael Callahan-Harris had his best game of the season with 28 carries for 187 yards and three touchdowns. Senior Brendan Murphy had a pair of short touchdown runs for the Chargers, but in the end, it wasn’t enough.

    “It was a lot of ups and downs the whole game,” said Winkler, who was 27-of-39 passing. “I was pacing the sidelines that last Columbine drive. We just didn’t stop them there.”

    Winkler nearly guided the Chargers in position to at least tie the game in the final minute. Chatfield drove down into Columbine territory in the waning seconds. Senior Jahrel Olson nearly made a spectacular one-handed grab in the back of the end zone with in the final 10 seconds, but he stepped out of bounds before he was able to control the pass from 28 yards out from Winkler.

    While combining for 93 points and 1,132 yards, it was the type of game McDondle fully expected.

    “I knew walking into it that it would be a battle,” McDondle said. “It’s always a battle with Chatfield.”

  • Boys tennis polls go largely unchanged ahead of regionals

    There wasn’t much change to either boys tennis poll as regional play gets set to start this week.

    Complete rankings for both classes are below.

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    CHSAANow.com Boys Tennis Polls

    Voted upon by coaches and media members around the state. New voters can sign up by emailing rcasey@chsaa.org. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding.

    Go to: 5A | 4A

    Class 5A
    RK TEAM PTS PVS
    1 Cherry Creek (11) 110 1
    2 Fairview 97 2
    3 Regis Jesuit 78 3
    4 Mountain Vista 69 4
    5 Fossil Ridge 66 6
    6 Arapahoe 62 5
    7 Grand Junction 44 7
    8 Denver East 31 8
    9 Boulder 28 9
    10 Chatfield 11 10
    Others receiving votes:
    Chaparral 5, Fort Collins 4.
    Dropped out
    None.

    Class 4A
    RK TEAM PTS PVS
    1 Kent Denver (5) 50 1
    2 Niwot 44 2
    3 Colorado Academy 40 4
    4 Cheyenne Mountain 36 3
    5 Mullen 30 5
    6 Air Academy 25 6
    7 D’Evelyn 20 7
    8 Discovery Canyon 15 8
    9 Greeley Central 10 9
    10 Valor Christian 5 10
    Others receiving votes:
    None.
    Dropped out
    None.